Grizzly Peak with East Bay Landscape Painters - December 19, 2009

Grizzly Peak View (pastel on paper12"x18") -Artist Janice L-H

This is a part of the overlook view that aims toward Berkeley and Albany with Mt. Tam floating in the clouds. Gloomier at 1PM, the clouds were very ethereal and only a hint of the golden shimmer was beginning to show.

This was a particularly interesting challenge for me last Saturday. After almost by-passing the meeting point (!), I was able to join the group and caravan in search of The View. It was pretty cloudy over the bay, but the hills in Berkeley were fairly sunny. The photo above was taken after I finished and walked back to the parking area (the sun was illuminating below the clouds by then).

The view from the little lot to the north of Lawrence Hall of Science has a ledge that would be easy to set up for painting. There is a charge for parking all day ($3.50). I was able to go in and buy lunch at the cafe on the lower floor and peruse the bookstore without paying admission (I asked first). The glare from the sun lighting up the Bridge(especially near the end of the session) makes me want to go back and try and catch that golden light better.

I found a Japanese website that can convert photos to looking like old fashioned silver-nitrate images: http://labs.wanokoto.jp/olds

Take a look: Cool, huh?

November - Lynn House Art Gallery Local Artists Collection

From the Antioch website:

http://www.art4antioch.org/Local-Artist-Collection.asp

5th Annual Local Artist Collection
November 14th - December 5th
The 5th Annual Local Artist Collection is a diverse, non-themed mixed media exhibit of artworks featuring paintings, sculptures, pottery and more. In its 5th year, the show is a local favorite; providing the community an opportunity to view and purchase art during the holiday season.
... The Lynn House Gallery is located at 809 W. 1st Street in Antioch (across from the Amtrak Train Station) and is open Fridays and Saturdays, during exhibits from 12 noon - 5 PM.

Pastel Paintings by Artist Janice L-H on display:
"China Camp Beach Shack" and
"Marshview Afternoon"

Check out the website above for more pictures and a list of participating artists!

Mountain View Cemetery - October 10 & 17, 2009

Saturday was sunny and bright in Oakland. I was early for the paint out with the East Bay Landscape Painters so I high-tailed it to the road up on the hill above Millionaire's Row at Mountain View Cemetery.

This is not exactly the view I had for my first painting (I was a little further down the road just in back of the statued monument - with a peek of the domed Oakland Columbarium through the trees. I left out the buildings in the background in the painting below.

Mountain View Monuments (9"x12"pastel) - Artist Janice L-H

This painting will be shown at the CELEBRATION OF ART Exhibit June 19th - July 10th, 2010*Antioch Historical Society Museum

I did rework this when I got home, darkening the liquid amber trees and highlighting the statue above the monument for emphasis.

There is a slight glare on the photo from the right but you can see what it used to look like here.

Once the group arrived I met them at the last fountain where we split up to paint. I had glimpsed one of my favorite statues on the way down the hill but got turned around going to the meeting place. Anyhow I saw the Veteran's Area where I think I will go next time to work up some of those great magnolia trees located there.

Finally finding the Angel at the end of the curve in front of a row of ornamental plum trees, I went to work.

Reclining Angel (12"x18" pastel) - Artist Janice L-H

Yes, I did rework this once I was home (I hope I'm not actually messing them up!) and you can see the original rendition here. I toned down the monuments, tree shadows and the sky and added some contour to the plum trees.

Can't wait to return next time!

Update for October 17:

View From The Hill (12"x18" pastel, Artist Janice L-H)

There's a long set of steps leading up this hill where there is a small water feature and roundabout big enough for one car. I - being me - did NOT go up all those stairs, I drove up there and found this view under an incredible oak tree. I did shorten the view because of the size of my paper but wanted to be beable to include the Crocker Monument as well as the Golden Gate Bridge (the top of the Oakland Columbarium peeking through the trees as well).

Wish I could have joined the rest of the painters last weekend!

Legion of Honor, SF - September 26, 2009

Weekly Wandering - SF & Folsom (Janice L-H)

Wanting to avoid the >100 degree heat in my area - I accompanied the EBPAP to the Legion of Honor for one of their bi-monthly paint outs. Although the fog was in and out around the bridge until about 10AM, the rest of the day turned out to be very warm! The EBPAP arranged for the group to be able to access the Legion of Honor facilites and handed out membership applications to whoever wanted them (in anticipation of the Musee d'Orsay exhibit that the De Young will have next year - membership is good for both SF museums).

EBPAP Critique gathered on the grass outside the wall to the Legion of Honor.

Foggy Bridge - Camino Del Mar (9"x12"pastel) Artist Janice L-H

I completed a quick pastel sketch of the Legion of Honor (yup it's too short!)

Legion of Honor (pastel) Artist Janice L-H

"Golden Gate Memorial"(9"x12"pastel) Artist Janice L-H

This painting below will be shown at the CELEBRATION OF ART Exhibit

June 19th - July 10th, 2010 at the Antioch Historical Society Museum

I apologize that I couldn't correctly render the writings on this beautiful memorial to Japanese Shipping in SF. Here is the real thing for those who can read Japanese. It is located to the north of the museum right before the golf course.

Folsom Gourd & Arts Festival - September 27, 2009

Got in the car the next day and headed north to the Sacramento area to join the Sacramento Plein Air Painters Meetup group. Hot! Just had time for one sketch which I have cropped here below. Since most of the group painted on Saturday, that just left me to record what I saw. I called the calvary at noon (my Folsom area friends) to pick me up and head back to their house for a cool lemonade and wonderful meal!

The Art booths at this festival were clustered in the rear of the park. The gourds were all delightful. A big Thank You to Sue of the Sacramento Meetup Group for arranging for free tickets for the Plein Air Painters who participated that weekend!

Folsom Gourd Festival, Folsom City Park (pastel) Artist Janice L-H)

Miller Knox Park, Point Richmond - August 30, 2009

Point Richmond - Canal Street (A bit out of order)

It was a foggy morning but soon the sun came out over Miller Knox Park. By the time I got there about noon, the picnic grounds were fairly protected from the wind but it was still pretty windy and cool by the water. After finding Sergio and Fran settled into their spots, I decided to drive down Dornan Drive to Ferry Point to look for painters. Not seeing any more easels setting up, I headed through Brickyard Cove over the hill to Canal Street near Shipyard #3 where I hoped to be able to paint tugboats. They were working that day and in addition to sailboats and parasails I caught sight of this one coming into the Marina Harbor Channel.

"Tugboat Shipyard #3" (9"x12"pastel) Artist Janice L-H

I set up near a very attractive drainage ditch (leave it to me to find a marshy spot with sea birds in all that concrete). It gave me a view of the Harbor Channel on one side and a view toward Mount Tam, and the megaexpensive houses built on piers over the water along Sandpiper Spit, next to the Richmond Yacht Club.

"Toward Sandpiper Spit" (9"x12"pastel) Artist Janice L-H

Aside from the occasional Richmond police cruiser, hiker, and tourists on the way to see the Red Oak Victory Ship, most of the traffic was on the water.

A very nice day indeed!


See the post on the nbpleinair website:

Miller-Knox, Point Richmond Paint-Out

Oakland Harbor and Cathedral - Sept. 19, 2009

Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, Oakland



"Bay Bridge in the Morning - Middle Harbor Shoreline Park"

Pastel (Artist Janice L-H)

I went out Saturday with another group (East Bay Landscape Painters -Monday Painters now also on Saturdays) to Middle Harbor Shoreline Park in Oakland. I was early and ran into the Coastal Clean-up Volunteers and lots of walkers and bicyclists. The Park has lots of benches and picnic tables in the area and a few places with restrooms nearby. This park has a really expansive view of the Bay Bridge (and a little of the Golden Gate if clear enough) , San Francisco and Yerba Buena Island. Three of the group assembled there that afternoon (Rebeca, Larry and Sunny) as well as another artist that was in the recent Antioch Rivertown Plein Air Paint-out (Thomas Glass Phinnessee).

Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland



I slipped away during the afternoon for lunch and dropped by the Oakland Cathedral of Light (by Lake Merritt on Grand Ave & Harrison). The cathedral has a mausoleum underneath it and some interesting statuary and stained glass in the recesses. The image you see has a figure projected on the diffused "window" over the altar. There's another large baffled light diffuser at the top of the dome. The exterior of the church is roundish but is said to resemble the hull of a boat construction.

Third Place! Rivertown Plein Air Paintout-Sept. 12, 2009

Rivertown Plein Air Paintout - Antioch, CA

I was pleasantly surprised to take Third Place with my pastel of "Painters At The Antioch Pier" (below left) and both of my pastel works (including "View of the Antioch Bridge" - below right) sold that evening!!

Pastels: (above left) "Painters At The Antioch Pier"
(above right)"View of the Antioch Bridge" (Artist: Janice L-H)

Rivertown Plein Air Paintout in Antioch was an interesting challenge. It was a dark and stormy morning with big rain drops and lightning dropping from the sky throughout the early part of the day. Painters gathered at Lynn House Gallery to register their canvases and paper and spread out over a designated area of Old Rivertown (including the Marina) to paint. http://www.art4antioch.org/RivertownPleinAir2009.asp

Antioch Fishing Pier (above)

View toward Antioch Bridge from Antioch Lumber (above)

Paintings were later displayed in the Lynn House Gallery (until October 3rd) and awards given out during the evening Artist's Reception. Many thanks to Diane Gibson-Gray and Mark Roberts and members of the Board of the Arts and Cultural Foundation of Antioch (special thanks to Karen James-Smith).

The Happy New Owner

Art Crawling in Napa - August 15. 2009

Art crawling in Napa at the V Pavillion was really fun!
Food, Art, Artists, Wine, Pastries, Barbeque - what's NOT to love?
I saw, I met, I bought! See the full write up at the link on the bottom of the page.

Bistro Jeanty - Yountville, CA (watercolor pencils)


Napa Valley Art Festival
from nbplein painters blog

Inverness With North Bay Plein Air - July 26, 2009

Tomales Bay, Inverness, CA

Plein Air Painters at Tomales Bay (watercolor pencils)

Here are Sergio, Iris and Gerald painting the "Point Reyes"boat that went aground some time ago and is a well-known landmark in the area. Several other painters joined the group that day. See the posting link at the end.


View Toward Elephant Mountain, Tomales Bay (pastels)


The "Point Reyes" on Tomales Bay (pastels)


Kayaking by the Golden Hind Marina, Inverness (watercolor pencils)


Check out the blog for this trip on the North Bay Plein Air site:
nbpleinair_Inverness link

Sundays in June & July with the Benicia Painters

A couple of times I met the Benicia Plein Air Painters "Da Group")
at this great beach park and boat launch area among the neighborhoods.
This was a neat jump off fishing spot at the end of the park (see below) .
I didn't have too much time that Sunday but managed this little sketch.

Fishing Spot 9th St. Beach (watercolor pencils)



9th Street Beach Park, Benicia - July 25, 2009 (watercolor pencils)


It was about 6PM at the Park in Benicia and the
wind was really blowing that day! This sketch was done
the day before (Saturday) because I was also painting at Inverness
on Sunday and JUST had time for a quick sketch
on the way home.

June was nice in the Fairfield area (not yet really hot) and the Sunday Benicia Painters gathered on the frontage roadside to paint the afternoon sun on the Cordelia Hills just below Marshview Drive.
The shadows that the oak trees make on the warm grassy hilsides are very interesting. The sun just illuminates the foreground grasses from behind in this view (below).

"Marshview Afternoon" (9"x12" pastel) -06/14/2009

South of Marshview Rd., Cordelia
This image (above) was shown in the recent Fairfield Art
Association's Suisun Marsh Show (July & August 2009)
at the Fairfield Performing Arts Theatre Gallery and also at Antioch's
Lynn House Gallery (Annual Local Artists Show, November-December 2009).

Cordelia Hills - June 14. 2009 (9" x12" watercolor & pastel)